The attachment of a first component to a second component is accomplished today by a variety of ways. In the automotive industry, for example, conventional methods of attachment include the welding of two metal components and the use of mechanical fasteners, such as nuts and bolts and rivets. Newer techniques include the use of advanced adhesives in attaching, for example, aluminum components to one another. These techniques are generally satisfactory for the attachment of components made up of the same or similar materials. They may be used alone or in combination, as is known.
Also in the automotive industry, greater challenges arise in the assembly of components made of different materials, such as the attachment of first component (such as an exterior or interior automotive trim piece of a vehicle) to a second component, perhaps made of a metal (such as the outside or inside of a metal door of a vehicle). Today a wide variety of trim pieces are attached to a metal substrate both on the outside and the inside of the modern vehicle. Such exterior trim pieces might include, but are not limited to, light bezels, bumper fascia and door molding, while interior trim pieces might include, but again are not limited to, door panels, pillar trim, and instrument panel components.
Conventional approaches to the attachment of interior and exterior trim pieces to the metal substrate include the use of mechanical fasteners, such as push-type nylon fasteners and bent-wire trim clips. While proving largely effective in retaining the trim piece to the metal substrate, the use of mechanical fasteners in such applications introduces added complexity into the assembly process. The fasteners must be first produced and provided to the assembler. The assembly then must attach the fastener to the trim piece, which must then be properly aligned with the fastener-receiving holes formed in the metal substrate.
As an alternative to the use of mechanical fasteners in the attachment of interior and exterior trim pieces to the metal substrate in automotive applications, some manufacturers are using prepared adhesives, such as dual sided tape that includes release liner attached to both surfaces of the tape. Typically the release liner is removed from one side of the tape which is then attached to the metal substrate. Once the tape is in position on the metal surface, the release liner on the opposite surface is removed and the trim piece is attached to the exposed side of the dual sided tape.
While being more cost-efficient and assembly time-saving than mechanical fasteners, the use of dual sided tape in the assembly process too frequently results in the misalignment of the trim piece relative to the metal substrate. The adhesive surfaces of the dual sided tape are purposefully very strong, thus requiring removal of the tape from both the trim piece and the metal substrate in the event that misalignment occurs on initial assembly. This problem offsets the assembly cost-savings experienced through the use of dual sided tape when compared with the use of mechanical fasteners.
As in so many areas of vehicle technology there is always room for improvement related to vehicle assembly systems.